Weekly Classics Discussions

Matthew Arnold

“Resolve to be thyself; and know that he,
Who finds himself, loses his misery!”

––Matthew Arnold

Being the eldest son of Thomas Arnold and his wife Mary Penrose Arnold, Matthew Arnold was born on 24 December 1822 at Laleham-on-Thames, Middlesex. John Keble stood as godfather to Matthew.

From 1831, Arnold was tutored by his clerical uncle, John Buckland, in Laleham. In 1834, the Arnolds occupied a holiday home, Fox How, in the Lake District. There William Wordsworth was a neighbour and close friend. In 1836, Arnold was sent to Winchester College, but in 1837 he returned to Rugby School. He wrote verse for a family magazine, and won school prizes. His prize poem, "Alaric at Rome", was printed at Rugby.

He attended John Henry Newman's sermons at the University Church of St Mary the Virgin but did not join the Oxford Movement. His poem Cromwell won the 1843 Newdigate prize. He graduated in the following year with second class honours in Literae Humaniores.

In 1845, after a short interlude of teaching at Rugby, Arnold was elected Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford. In 1847, he became Private Secretary to Lord Lansdowne, Lord President of the Council. In 1849, he published his first book of poetry, The Strayed Reveller. In 1850 Wordsworth died; Arnold published his "Memorial Verses" on the older poet in Fraser's Magazine.

In 1852, Arnold published his second volume of poems, Empedocles on Etna, and Other Poems. In 1853, he published Poems: A New Edition, a selection from the two earlier volumes famously excluding Empedocles on Etna, but adding new poems, Sohrab and Rustum and The Scholar Gipsy. In 1854, Poems: Second Series appeared; also a selection, it included the new poem Balder Dead. In 1865, Arnold published Essays in Criticism: First Series. Essays in Criticism: Second Series would not appear until November 1888, shortly after his death. In 1866, he published Thyrsis, his elegy to Clough who had died in 1861. Culture and Anarchy, Arnold's major work in social criticism (and one of the few pieces of his prose work currently in print) was published in 1869. Literature and Dogma, Arnold's major work in religious criticism appeared in 1873.

Harold Bloom writes that "Whatever his achievement as a critic of literature, society or religion, his work as a poet may not merit the reputation it has continued to hold in the twentieth century. Arnold is, at his best, a very good, but highly derivative poet, unlike Tennyson, Browning, Hopkins, Swinburne and Rossetti, all of whom individualized their voices."

Matthew Arnold has been characterised as a sage writer, a type of writer who chastises and instructs the reader on contemporary social issues.

In the elegies as in the love poems can be seen how congenial to Arnold were themes of loss and longing—of the light that failed, the frustrated search, and the love that never was. The compulsions that drove him are also visible—the ingrained call to duty, the need for calmness of spirit, and the search for unity of mind and purpose in the fellow-feeling.

Arnold died suddenly in 1888 of heart failure whilst running to meet a tram that would have taken him to the Liverpool Landing Stage to see his daughter.

Discussion Questions:

What is your favorite poem written by Arnold? How is it different from others?

What impact do you think Matthew Arnold had over criticism and poetry, alike?

Always open to additional comments and discussions on Matthew Arnold and his works.

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Resources:
Wikipedia: Matthew Arnold
Arnold: His theme and styles
Matthew Arnold: Britannica